Breaking Point
by Amsally
Summary: Sakura could never have beaten him. The little girl had wasted his time but it wasn't her time to die yet.
1. Follow me

"And so your fight ends here, little girl," he said, without looking at her.

She could hear disgust in his voice, making her feel like she wasn't even worth the time he had spent on defeating her. Never in her life had she felt more useless or helpless, and feeling like that was common for the kunoichi since her days as a Genin.

Roaming the battleground without haste, she saw him looking closer at some of his weapon's pieces with narrowed brows, groaning silently. It seemed like he was calculating their damage, and clearly wasn't amused by his destroyed pieces of art.

They had been puppets before their fight, and now they were mere crashed limbs and splintered pieces of wood, metal, and porcelain laid across the battlefield without a hint to their former appearance. There were so many of them. Hundreds, maybe even more. She had lost count of how many of his terrible, death bringing dolls she had destroyed during their fight.

Even if they didn't move anymore, she could still hear the rattling sound their mouths made while trying to punch, slice, and poison her. One after another she had taken them down, always on guard to avoid any wounds. The noise had decreased gradually with every attack she landed. Presently they laid still on the ground, quiet and lifeless, but the silence couldn't comfort her thoughts. It didn't matter anymore if they moved or not, since they would hunt her forever in her memories.

When the fight had reached its peak and he had released his hundred puppet technique, she had lost her concentration while wondering how to defeat that enormous technique. Sakura had completely trusted in Chiyo's ability to keep the most dangerous puppets away from her, thus letting down her guard long enough to let a quiet doll dash into her blindspot from her right side.

The old lady's warning scream had made Sakura look in her direction just as the flying marionette whistled past her. A second later Sakura felt a sharp tinge on her skin. A quick look revealed that a papercut had formed just above her left elbow, showing a small red line on her arm. Just a small tiny wound, nothing to worry about, yet just deep enough to make her bleed. Enough to influence her, again. A scratch was enough to become infected with paralysation, and fever. She could almost feel the purple liquid creep inside her veins, moving through her body fast due to her high blood pressure that enhanced the distribution time.

Sakura had already seen the effects this poison had on Kankuro.

At this point, she knew her time was up. The last remedy against this weird and complicated toxin had been destroyed at the cave's entrance. It broke when she'd darted backwards and hit her back against a wall to avoid one of his deathbringers. She knew that without the remedy, there wouldn't be enough time left for her to defeat him. She only had ten minutes before she wouldn't be able to move anymore.

At the very best it might even be fifteen minutes, but that would only work if she stopped moving immediately, restricted the blood flow in her arm, sucked out the poison and .. Didn't have to run from this maniac puppeteer. Which clearly wasn't an option. With an antidote and time, she could have healed herself without even struggling. She cursed, angry at herself. How could she have been so stupid to believe three antidote portions could ever be enough against an enemy specialised in this area?

Trying to avoid another one of his devilish attacks, she sent a hateful look into his direction. He answered her passive moves with another hysterical crazy laughter. Their fight went on like that like a conversation between an introvert and a hunter.

She watched everyone of his moves closely, trying to recognise patterns in his fighting style that might give her a better chance at winning. There was nothing new to find, but the more she looked, the more the sight made her stomach hurt. His screeching in the back only added to that effect. Not only was he an inhuman lunatic, he was psychotic. Probably the weirdest asshole Suna had ever produced. His mind was mirrored by his fighting style: unpredictable, but planning.

He could have easily killed her long before now, but it seemed to amuse him to let her run for her life instead of ending this farce, like a predator, playing a wicked version of hide and seek with his prey. A very ill and deadly one and she could almost predict how this would end for her. Pictures of her body on the floor, splattered with blood, broken bones, and ripped clothes ran through her head. Her friends would be devastated when they would find her like that. How could anyone enjoy tormenting other humans like that. Just what had fucked a man like him up so much. What happened to the cute little boy Chiyo had told her about?

Trying to form a new tactic that suited her situation better, she took cover behind a large rock that laid around since her last chakra enhanced punch. It had destroyed the cave's structure and made the ceiling fall to the floor in pieces. Probably one of her smarter moves, since it gave at least a little safety inside this insanity.

The sight of the sky was calming in comparison to the darkness that had lingered before she destroyed the ceiling. He couldn't hide himself in the shadows anymore, which led to a tiny advantage for her, since she could at least see from where the attacks might come. His fingers were forming patterns, that gave her an idea of which dolls would follow her next, but in the short timespan she couldn't use that information to the fullest. The number of weapons he wielded made exact predictions impossible.

A idea formed in the hectic situation that consisted of hit and run on her side. If she could use some of her last chakra reserves to punch another hole to make enough noise, her allies might hear it if they were still close enough. It was a last hope to hold on to and the only one that might save her life and Chiyo's. If she couldn't save herself, she would do everything to give the other woman a better chance at escaping her grandson.

The effect of the poison had finally set in and her body slowly stopped moving according to her will. First, she felt a little prickle on her skin, starting at the papercut. Just like a leg, after it went numb. The feeling slowly crept up her arm, moving closer towards her heart. From there it caught her other arm, stomach and legs, down to her feet. Next, she couldn't feel her limbs anymore.

What a weird feeling, she thought, wondering about the strange sensation that had captured her completely. She didn't have time to speculate and wonder at this point, she had to stop him with all her might. But with the paralysation of her body she had failed, being just as useless as always, like on all those missions she had completed only thanks to her teammates as a Genin.

When the numbness had kicked in, she fell, and for a short moment it felt like flying.

Whatever she did, it wasn't enough. What had all that training with Tsunade, her shijo, been good for? Trained to win? A nice idea, but not something Sakura could accomplish in the end. Beaten, she laid on the floor on her stomach.

He walked past her, so close he could have touched her if he wanted to - a disgusting thought, making her insides shiver, yet unseen on the outside. She was relieved when he didn't. At least she didn't have to endure that. The paralysation was unnerving enough to make want to scream louder than she ever did before. No sound would touch her lips, no matter how hard she tried. The toxins were raging through her veins faster than her natural resistances could neutralize them.

He stepped out of her field of view, so she listened instead. As long as she was able to, Sakura would do anything within her capabilities to gather information and defeat this enemy. It sounded scratching, like he was lifting something, or someone. She didn't know. Chiyo's face crossed her mind. He had talked to her so informal and condescending. Sakura would never do something so cruel to her own grandmother. Something must have happened between them. Maybe he had a weak spot that could be exploited. But if the weird lifting sound meant he was lifting Chiyo, he'd probably hurt or kill her now. What she would do without the old Lady's support was something she didn't want to think about. The thought made her unconsciously hold her breath, pained by the idea.

When she grasped for air, the movement and how normal it felt, made her wonder. Breathing wasn't harder than before. She could do that. What else was still possible? Trying to move her body, she tested her abilities. But no matter how hard she tried, Sakura couldn't move even a single finger. How the hell was she even able to breathe anymore? It was nerve wracking. What should she do? Would he kill her?

There was no way he would let her survive this fight. She wasn't a kid anymore, she was a kunoichi, and all the ninjas that had lost in battle against Sasori no Akasuna before her were dead or puppets.

Unwilling to surrender, a tiny spark of hope ignited again: maybe her teammates would come around to save her? What a pathetic thought that was. Of course they would come, find and save her. They always did.

Naruto was a hero, and she was the little girl that always needed his help.

"… quite a fight. I didn't have to use my own body for a really long time." Oh, it seemed like he was.. talking? Sakura didn't understand why he would start a conversation now. Or a monologue, since she couldn't answer. Sasori didn't seem to be much of a talker, more like a quiet monster, waiting for his prey to make a single mistake. She had made one to many.

"Too sad you can't answer. Your aggressive threats were almost cute," he chuckled. The grin didn't reach his narrowed eyes, but she could see their color, that seemed almost red. Before, they had appeared to be a brown colour, but his bloodthirst changed their appearance it seemed. He came a step closer, readjusted his arm and moved his now better functioning hand through his hair to get rid of the red strands of hair hanging into his eyes and disturbing the sight. The movement seemed so normal, so human. It just didn't fit the picture of the cold puppeteer he had displayed until now.

While he walked away from her to a place she couldn't see, due to her paralyzed state that prohibited her from turning her head enough to keep on watching him, she thought about what he had said. The word cute didn't fit him either, and it was weird that he rather roamed the battleground than finishing her. Again, she could hear him moving things. Since Chiyo laid in the other direction, she assumed it were some of his puppets. Their state should be beyond repairable, but on the other hand she didn't know much about that fighting style and weapons. She should have sparred sometimes with Kankuro, to get to know the techniques better, but she had used all her time in Suna differently. So maybe Sasori would find a way to use the parts again.

"If this poison wasn't created by me, I wouldn't be sure if you can even listen what I say right now," he murmured, coming closer again by the sound of his footsteps and volume of his voice. He crossed her sight again, controlling some puppet parts with his technique that flew behind him. They didn't seem to be damaged too much, but single parts shouldn't be too useful for him.

He silently walked around the now destroyed cave for a while, checking his other puppet's parts. Again he stepped into her vision. It somehow relaxed her to be able to see what he did. His words echoed in her head again and again until she realised what made her wonder so much about them. Her still breathing was on purpose. The fact confused her even more, but it also ensured her that breathing wouldn't be something she had to worry about for the next hours. Enough time for her friends to find her, if she was lucky.

"Guess I can't help it. I'll just leave these ones here."

He moved some of his fingers and some of the pieces flew through the air and stopped on a unrolled scroll. Immediately he scratched a part on his chest where his heart canister was located. It produced some drops of blood, which he used to seal the scroll before closing and packing it into his Akatsuki coat. A sigh escaped his mouth as he threw off the crimson coat he wore. It landed halfway over her body, hiding her a little from the entrance of the cave. She probably looked like one of his marionettes now. He turned his head towards her feet, checking if she was hidden well enough and tucked on some places around her legs to adjust the placement of the red robe.

He stood up again, turning his head in a smooth movement directly into the direction of her eyes. And he was slowly coming closer to her face, checking her hideout with every step he took, and stood still next to her head, his eyes staring at her. Sakura was sure he was about to kill her now. He had to. She would have killed her enemy first and hid him afterwards, if at all, but who knew what his reasons for that behaviour were.

"I'll have to prepare the third," he mumbled under his breath, looking away from her towards the human puppet of the former Kazekage. Still next to her, he looked at the kunoichi again in obvious disgust. He crouched down to her and investigated her pulse and the cut on her arm. He seemed to be pleased by the results, as he grabbed her wrist and held it up high enough for her to see the dark violet veins contrasting the almost white skin of her body in which the toxins still raged, already weakening her. She had recognized the first signs of a fever and the beginning of a headache, that formed between her eyes. Even in the chilling atmosphere, she could feel the heat and a few sweat drops forming on her chin.

"So, little girl, you've put up quite a fight but that squabble of yours is over now. Your antidotes are strong, still, you're massively lacking in almost everything," he tapped on her arm. She cussed inwards at the touch. The feeling of his finger on her disgusted her even more than the helpless feeling that flooded her with emotions. He stared at her, waiting for a sign that she had listened and understood what he pointed out.

When she looked away to escape his glare, he let go of her, her arm falling to the floor without his support. The hand that had gripped her wrist seconds before now grabbed her chin, moving her head even closer, so that she had to look at him, no matter where she turned her eyes. He didn't only want her attention, he demanded it and Sakura had to give into him due to the state she was captured in.

"Your tactics and dodging skills are below average. Crappy ninjutsu. Wasting chakra on useless actions. Without Chiyo, you would be dead by now. One of my first hits could have killed you!" he called, way too loud for her ears. A little ringing lasted, his words echoing again and again. Could have killed you. Killed. Killed. Killed.

Again, he narrowed his eyes which seemed to be a common gesture for him. He had done it several times during their fight. It made the brown colour appear even darker, but not as red and furious as before. Somewhere between he must have lost that stare filled with hate and bloodthirst. Now only anger resumed. He squeezed her chin a little more, ripping her away from her thoughts. Less loud than before he resumed his critique of her abilities.

"That wannabe antidotes won't help you if you can't handle poisons correctly. You forgot to counter the metal ingredients if you even noticed their presence. And your strength wont do, since you're by far not fast enough. Improve that, fast," he ordered with a dark voice and let go of her chin. He stood up again, hiding his hands in the pockets of his cloak but never removed this eyes from hers, still examining her, which somewhat surprised her. Never in her life had anyone gazed at her, locking their eyes for so long. No friend and no enemy.

It took longer than she liked, until he averted his gaze, slightly shaking his red haired head he mumbled "Pathetic, even for Konoha." Again he moved some red strands away with his hand, that got dislocated by his former movement.

With this monologue he had insulted Sakura, her teacher Tsunade and her village Konoha in general, which enraged her more than anything he had done before. Thoughts circled around again in Sakura's head, making it impossible for her to draw smart conclusions anymore. Giving up on a proper characterization of him, she still wondered what this was supposed to mean. That might have been the longest conversation she had ever heard from him. Yet it was just a bunch of mean things he wanted to offend her with, which brought her to the conclusion that he was either stupid or an asshole. The fear that had consumed her was replaced by other emotions, and every one of them aimed to defeat or kill him in the most cruel way possible.

There were several evil thoughts that appeared in her head, one meaner than the other. Inner Sakura ranted at him in a never ending tirade, while the real Sakura didn't move at all. She just couldn't. But as soon as she could, she would rip his head off and his heart out. There was no more doubt about it in her heart. Until now, she had somehow hoped Naruto or Chiyo would be able to convince Sasori to stop being with Akatsuki and surrender himself to Suna to await punishment for his crimes. But the ongoing insults towards all she stood for had broken down the last wall that stopped her from hating him more than any other person in her life.

He stopped her train of thought when he opened his mouth again to speak once more. This time his tone was different, less aggressive and rather full of wonder and interest. "You have potential, though. I hate to admit that. Intelligent, and quick to be submissive. I believe you've never been a puppet before, right?" He didn't wait for an answer, it was a plain rhetorical question that didn't need one. Not that she had been able to.

"But I really enjoyed seeing you attached to strings. There's a certain kind of beauty to it. You'd really make a nice doll in my collection." A quiet snicker escaped his mouth. "Not an especially pretty one, just average, but beauty is something I can add effortlessly. Yet you could be a strong one if you get the right training, but sadly, that takes time and patience, which I do not own."

He took a deep breath - or at least that was what it looked like. Was he even breathing? Was he even alive? She wasn't sure. He was anything but human. This man was monster; a terrible one. In addition he had called her ugly which made her rage even more inside. He must have seen the green eyes narrowing and clamoring sheer hate at him.

Suddenly, as if to answer the change in her stare, the look in his brown eyes became even more frightening, darkening them further. It looked like Sasori was plotting something. The way they became bigger in something she couldn't grasp made her hold her breath, as the fear crept in again. It looked somewhat like anticipation but madness took over the more she looked at it and the mix of it was nothing Sakura wanted to explore.

Whatever he was up to, she was pretty sure it wasn't good for her.

"You hate laying on the ground. And your eyes definitely tell me, that you hate me. But there's one thing you despise even more and that is your own ineptitude that brought you here. Am I right, little girl?" A disgusting smirk grew on his face, uneven like the ones the teenage boys used back at the academy. Not like the bright smile Naruto had when he was talking to her. It was more of that dark one Sasuke had, hiding dangerous and painful secrets buried in the past. His facial expression had changed his eye colour again to a lighter shade which made him seem less frightening, but she wouldn't let herself think any better of him due to this.

His eyes narrowed as he bent down and grabbed her by her short pink hair. That might have hurt more if she had felt less numb. He held her up high enough so he could look her in the eyes. Surprisingly they were almost the same height.

In other situations this might have made her feel a little better, since the weirdo wasn't taller than her. Hopefully that might scratch his ego which would be nice. She liked the idea of hurting him for everything he'd done to her and Chiyo-baa sama. The old lady still laid on the ground, unmoving. Was she dead? Sakura couldn't see. She wouldn't now and maybe she would never find out.

This would be the perfect time to end her life with one of his trademark laughs that scared her more than she would admit. Stabbing a knife through her heart would be easy now. Or ripping her to pieces with inhuman puppet strength. The possibilities just ran through her mind and she couldn't stop them. Her mind wouldn't let her. She was scared, no doubt about it. But it was different from any fear she had ever encountered in her life: her death was imminent and he played with her so she couldn't even calculate when she was going to take her last breath. He didn't have to move a single finger since Sakura's time was running out like sand in an hourglass. If she could, she would have screamed her lungs out. Yet those screams were merely internal, without a sound. And his eyes were still lingering at her, exploring.

He wasn't exploring. Instead he was calculating. A minute passed, and he hadn't said a word. Not even blinking he just gazed at her, never averting from her eyes as if he was captured by them. So she answered the quiet conversation with emotions, trying to make him leave or at least look somewhere else. He wouldn't fulfill her wishes.

"How often do you train? Your knuckles are bruised, which might be from today's fight with me. But your ninja gear looks like you wear it often. Maybe… five days a week or so," he stated while evaluating her body, her clothes and then her face again.

"It's functional. Good. At least you don't wear something that might get in the way," he hummed, clearly deep in thought. She assumed he tried to find more flaws about her, her fighting or anything else. so his next move surprised her more than it irritated her. He gently took a strand of her hair and twirled it carefully between his wooden fingers in front of his face to inspect it further.

"Your hair length is ok. Shorter would be better. Not hard to be dealt with. But this weird shade will always give away your identity." The pink hair had always been a part of her, so she never thought much about it. But now she realised that she had never seen any person with a shade close to hers, except for her father. Red was uncommon. Pink was rare. So she had to accept that he was right, it would always give her away. Every shinobi in the world would be able to recognize her and many countries would hunt her in her future due to her medical skills. Something to worry about another day.

"You will start with running, six times a week. And improve that terrible dodging skills, your weakest point. If you really want to become strong enough to beat me one day, try hard. Until then, don't fight people stronger than you, little girl." There was provocation in his voice, challenging her in her paralyzed state that allowed no reaction to his incitement.

"And don't ever waste my time again," he hissed. "If you tell anybody I'm alive I'll kill every single one of them and make sure you watch. You'll be the last one, and I'll make sure you will live your whole life serving me as my special puppet. So you can watch me forever but can't do anything against my will." The evil grin on his face did the rest to scare her. But it sounded like he wasn't about to kill her.

In an unexpected, slow and kind fashion, he put her on the ground and rested her back to one of the big boulders that surrounded them, tugging her again under the red cloak that had come undone when he pulled her up. Then, with a weird combination of a wry smirk and a little wink he jumped off and disappeared. Still without the ability to move or make a sound, Sakura was alone with her thoughts in the gloomy deserted cave.

* * *

Big emerald eyes, the weird pink hair and the red clothes - she looked like a stupid clown in all those bright colours. And yet there was a certain kind of beauty to it, especially the eyes. The fire in them, fueled by hate, made him stare even more. Ignoring all her terrible flaws, she was at least a well skilled medic nin for her age, which was uncommon. Particular uncommon in Suna.

 _If only you were better trained, little girl. You could be a nice plan E, if all else faild. How long would you need to get useful at least?_ Her eyes screamed of a strong willed mind. _And a medic nin her age…_

 _You seem to be smart, at least some of your tactics were. And it's a long time since I took such a gamble._

* * *

Slowly the sun began to down as the shadows grew longer, and he still lingered on top of the cave, just outside her field of view, observing her. Again he mumbled to himself, just loud enough for him to hear: "Follow me, little girl. And don't make me wait too long."

* * *

Thanks a lot for reading. I hope you enjoyed it.

I tried not to make any spelling / grammar mistakes, but since I'm still learning, just let me know if you find something.

A long time I wasn't sure if I should include the two small parts under the line, but I enjoyed them to much to lock them away. This fanfic is not planned to be a oneshot, there is more in production. I already wrote some more chapters that I currently rework and enhance to improve them.


	2. Finding Emeralds

Her surroundings had gotten colder as soon as the sunlight was gone. Within the next hour it was way too cold to be comfortable anymore and she still couldn't move. Usually shivering would have given her at least a tiny amount of warmth but even that bit was missing. It didn't get very cold in this area though so she wouldn't have to worry about freezing to death, which was a small ray of light on her mind. She could hear the wind outside whistling through the trees, moving leaves and branches which made a calming melody mixed with the silence of nightfall.

As long as no wild animals or rogue nin appeared, there should be no problem for the next twenty-four hours but she doubted it would take that long for somebody to find her. The mission was known to every shinobi in Suna and her friends should be somewhere not to far away. After defeating the enemy they would return here for sure to look after her.

Breathing and blinking with her eyes were the only movements she could control, which was a weird, unnerving feeling to her. Not being able to change anything about the situation, her thoughts began to wander to places her body couldn't follow.

No matter how hard she tried to calm her mind and assure herself there would be no further complications, the growing emotions kept nagging on her, whispering scenarios to her mind. Contrary to outside - her unmoving body -, inside raged a storm mixed of fear and blind anger for her new found enemy. The redhead, who made her run for her life just to paralyse and then leave her here. Whenever she could see clearer and the fury declined, there were parts where she tried to emphasize with him to understand why he'd done it. But no matter how hard Sakura thought about it, she couldn't get a hold on his motivations. These actions didn't make sense.

Maybe it was another stupid sadistic game, like the one he played on her before. First he tortured her body, now he continued with her mind.

She came to the conclusion that he had never used his full potential during their fight. Even with the antidote and her partner in this fight, the call was clear from the beginning. Destroying Hiruko wasn't luck, he had calculated it and taken the risk willingly. That's when he found out about her chakra induced strength. He probably wanted to get information about her fighting style, since she wasn't as known in the ninja world as others that were featured in bingo books and similar resources. And with almost three hundred dolls at his command, losing one was peanuts to him.

The third kazekage was nothing but another sacrifice to block the powers of the two puppets Chiyo had wielded, mother and father. Dodging the huge iron sand formations had strained her chakra in addition and made her use the first antidote. Had he known about the existence of it?

Sakura had a weird feeling about this thought, something was off about it. This jigsaw didn't fit kazekage one was way more powerful, especially with the iron sand jutsu. Could it be he had underestimated her there? Maybe it wasn't a part of his plan, there was no sense in giving up on it. No, at this point he went for her life and got taken by surprise. Surely he didn't know of the antidote and her superior medical knowledge. Most people underestimated her concerning this. Being a medic nin at her age was uncommon. And being a brilliant student taught by Tsunade herself was nothing he could have predicted.

The hundred dolls he used - that was harder to solve. And the first time he seemed to have to concentrate at all during the fight. So wielding many puppets might to be harder. Why hadn't he used ten like the elder lady then? Or twenty which still should be easier to manage than the amount he had summoned. Another part that didn't seem to fit.

Had be become more careful after the destruction his favourite toy? A possibility she had to consider, but he could have used all of them at once to attack her. Yet most of the time more than half of the puppets were flying around without actually attacking, she realised. Ten, maybe fifteen had issued her at the same time but never more. Chiyo had to fend off about the same amount of attackers during that phase of the fight. Whenever one got destroyed, another took its place. It mostly challenged her dodging skills and stamina, while she ran from the dolls and smashed them one by one whenever the chance occured. Maybe he tested her physical skills even further during that phase.

Her mind would be calmer if he had acted like a major show off similar to Naruto instead of the cold calculating puppeteer that seemed to be up to something at all times. But the redhead had constantly incited her during their fight and examined her reactions.

It was a constant test of her abilities, she realised, surprised by the conclusion she couldn't come to until now..

But why would he try her, and then leave? If he deemed her a threat to his life, killing her would be a simpler way to handle the risk. Not taking her life meant he wasn't scared of her. Which hinted the scale of his skills. According to this, his strength had to be superior to hers. That made her a little toy he liked to play with for a second. The paralysation had probably changed that to making her and Chiyo irrelevant in his eyes.

That thought made her wonder about her companion's state. She tried to locate the other woman within her wrecked surroundings, looking from the right end of her limited field of view to the left. Unsuccessful, she sighed inwardly. At least her chakra was still somewhere close to her which meant she was still alive. She desperately wished to ask her about Sasori. Maybe she knew more about his intentions, they had been a family once. If she didn't know what was going on in his head, nobody would.

It unnerved Sakura how much he had snuck into her head, haunting and controlling her brain like one of his puppets. The man was crazy, nothing else. He shouldn't captivate her thoughts like that. Somehow he still controlled her behaviour long after he left. She wanted to bite her tongue to concentrate, to regain consciousness, but the paralyzing toxins left her unsatisfied. As mind blowing as their fight had been, she had other things to tend do. Her friends were still fighting and Gaara was somewhere unknown to her, his life in danger. Right now Sasori's motivations didn't matter. She had to get out of here and help before she could hunt the puppeteer a second time, but without the others finding her, the chances to do so were decreasing drastically.

How long might their fight with the blonde Akatsuki member last? They had an advantage in numbers but she didn't know his fighting style except for the explosions from before. He had almost destroyed Suna. Impossible to calculate his strength by that alone. Overthrowing Gaara was hard, he hadn't become Kazekage at his age without a reason. Which meant the crazy bomber was another deadly threat nobody should underestimate.

Not even if he looked like a kind of cute, male version of Ino. His weapons were as explosive as her best friend's outbursts during her PMS. The resemblance amused her, but if the blonde girl ever found out about her thoughts, she'd probably punch her in the face. She deemed it wise not to let her know about this. Especially since she shouldn't joke like that in her situation. How much she wished her best friend to be here with her. Or any other of her friends.

She decided to trust in her friends and to believe in them as much as they had in her. Thinking of them made the current situation less frightening and helped her not to think about the shadows that seemed to dance around her the longer she looked at them. She had been scared of the dark since the night when Sasuke had left Konoha and knocked her out to stay behind on the bench. The feeling had almost overpowered her, but a motivation by inner Sakura helped enough to keep the trepidation away for now. Giving up wasn't an option. Of course they would find her.

According to her feeling, about two hours had passed since her enemy left when she gave up fighting against the overpowering tiredness that kept coming. She had spent the last hour dozing off every few minutes whenever her eyes fell shut. Sakura wanted to be awake when the others would find her. They might get scared seeing her like that. Otherwise, the short tempered Naruto might think she were dead or something. But after fighting against the sleep for so long, the chakra depletion got to her and she gave in to the sweet temptation that sleep and dreams provided.

Sakura's dreams faded slowly, when she felt hands on both her shoulders. Someone was shaking her. Wondering why she were able to feel the movement she fought herself back into consciousness only to open her eyes to a pair of ocean coloured ones, filled with tears and a sea of emotions. The boy right in front of her had blonde, chaotic hair. As soon as he realised her stare the biggest smile she had seen for days grew on his face.

It took her a while to realise it was Naruto. Her head brimmed with a headache and dizziness. Thinking was hard. She couldn't remember how she got here, in this chilly place. But at least one of her friends was here with her. Trying to express her happiness, she opened her mouth, forming words..

To her annoyance, she didn't open her mouth at all. Her lips wouldn't make a movement. Her tongue was made of stone. She couldn't. None of her body parts would do as she wished. Unnerved about her situation, she remembered. What had happened, where she was.

The bloody fighting scenes captured her mind again. The helplessness she had felt, when he came closer. The hate that filled her heart, when he said these evil things to Chiyo. He had hurt her somehow during their fight. And she realised the effects of the puppeteers poisons were still working on her body. The loneliness must have made her lose her mind if she forgot omnipresent things like the state of her body. She had to tell him somehow. But how should she explain Naruto what was going on?

Talking would be the easiest way, or gesturing but none of it was possible. She couldn't think of a way to get rid of the hindring effects without the antidote she had created. There were no doses left and the next amount could only be produced in Suna with the recipe she gave the doctors in the hospital and the herbs the gardeners harvested and the chemical gear inside their research buildings and…

The thoughts somersaulted inside her head again, leaving no space for clear thinking. It took a while for her to sort it out again but the conclusion didn't make her happy at all. The Konoha nins would have to bring her there. But she had to tell them first, somehow.

Her blonde teammate hugged her cheerfully, crying tears of joy that ran down his face.

"Sakura.. we.. we thought you were de.. dead," he sobbed, his whole body shaking. He was clearly upset. Having her seen like that, unmoving on the floor on this battleground must have induces the greatest terrors in his heart. That's why she wanted to stay awake. That was exactly what she had wanted to avoid.

"I'm so glad you're alive. We were so worried, you looked dead!"

"Na, na, Naruto, don't strangle her. Give her some space to breath," a older man's voice censured the blonde. She recognised it from somewhere. Immediately she was being let go, now able to look into the faces of her friends. They all appeared exhausted, but alive and just minor injured to her great relief. If they were hurt or in a critical state right now, she couldn't have helped them. The moment she saw them all, she realised the voice belonged to Kakashi, her sensei. That explained why Naruto had obeyed so fast. He seemed to be more exhausted than the others. Deidara must have had been a strong opponent to wear her teacher out like that.

Another wave of hatred for Sasori and his actions rolled over her. Making sure she couldn't follow him was a smart move. But making sure she couldn't help her friends if his partner wounded them was a sadistic one. She couldn't shake the feeling off her that he planned everything to the last bit. But still, killing her would have been so much easier for him.

"Sakura, are you okay? What's wrong, why don't you say anything?" a voice interrupted her thoughts. For a moment her feelings had consumed her again. The questioning eyes made her try to answer, but she couldn't, leaving her with a feeling of growing pain and failure.

Wanting to communicate with them, she thought about how to tell them about her situation. The only things she could do was breathing and blinking. And so she did, closing her eyes, keeping them closed for a short, yet longer time than a blink usually lasted, and opened them again. Then she stared intently at them, to underline her action. Hopefully at least her sensei would recognize the signs she gave them.

Sakura had to repeat the process four times to make them understand she wasn't able to speak.

Her assumption was correct. As she had predicted, the grey haired shinobi was the first to realise she was trying to tell them something and read her signs correctly. He explained his theory quickly so the others knew what her situation was, too. If she could, she would have started to cry yet her eyes stayed dry. Now they might find a way to understand.

Kakashi found a quick way to communicate with her, getting the information he needed to form a new plan. He asked questions and told her theories. One blink would mean 'yes'. Two meant 'no' and three ones were meant for questions she didn't know the answer.

"Is Chiyo here?" - Blink.

"Are you two poisoned?" - Blink.

"Is there an antidote?" - Blink.

"Ok, tell me where so we can help you." This was neither a yes, nor a no. It was in Suna. So she went for the third option and picked three blinks. He flinched at her answer. Of course. A medicine against the toxins would have hurried the interrogation process. He tried some other variations of the question to make sure his assumptions were right before he talked to the others for a bit.

They made the decision to bring her and Chiyo back to Suna into the hospital, where the medics would care for them. It was the only logical reaction for them, since none of them had the advanced medical skills to examine the two kunoichis and extract the poison. If Sakura was correct the doctors should have replicated her antidote by now with the help of her orders given to the head doctor. As soon as she would get treated with it, the paralysation would be released and she would be able to use her body again. Finally.

Kakashi and Gai decided it would be the best and fastest way to carry the two women piggyback, since there were no other ways to transport them. Naruto carefully put Sakura's arms around his neck and pulled her up to carry her on his back, always concerned about the state she was in. He asked a never ending amount of questions during their short trip, and laughed at himself whenever he realised she couldn't answer. Whenever one of her arms slid down, he would stop for a moment to put it back in the right location, jokingly lecturing her that she had to be more careful where she touched him. First she desperately wanted to punch him for the stupid comments, but his sunny attitude enlightened her mind and blew away the worries for a short time.

Grinning with a smile that presumably went from one ear to the other, he boasted how awesome his fighting skills were and how he made sure of the fanatic bomber's death with Kakashi. "You know, Kakashi sensei used this weird new type of sharingan. I've never seen that before. He's such a great sensei, Sakura-chan," he praised their sensei, which probably made the older man grin in pride underneath the black mask that covered half of his face. She was glad the two of them had defeated the Akatsuki member. If both of them were still alive, it would be a big problem. One was more than enough.

Somewhere on the way he got more quiet and directed his speech to another topic. In short, confusing sentences he tried to explain what had happened to Gaara. Often he would start a sentence to end it in the middle without going on or stuttering until he gave up. Or gulping. It was clear to see that he didn't feel good and worried a lot about his friend. She had been told the Kazekage had fought against Deidara and lost, but she didn't know what happened between his abduction and the moment they had found him in the cave with the two enemies. His words weren't really clear and disturbed by him gulping several times. She felt the desperate urge to hug Naruto, pat his head and tell him everything was going to be alright. That she was personally going to make sure Gaara was fine. Just comfort him in any way. But for now she had to wait until they reached their destination.

Shortly after she could make out Sunagakure in the distance. Motivated by the sight, her friends speed up even more and within ten minutes they reached the gates, welcomed by the guards on duty. Under different circumstances Lee and Gai would definitely blabber something about youth and new records, but the mood wasn't right for it now. She never thought she'd ever miss that weird talk of them.

As soon as the guards on duty spotted the group with the lifeless Gaara, everything began to get hectic. They immediately rushed towards them where Gai gently gave the Kazekage's body to them. Without asking any questions, they turned on their heels to carry their leader to the hospital, completely ignoring Sakura and her companions. Not sure what to do her friends looked confused at each other.

"Follow them, and bring Sakura and Chiyo to a medic that knows about the antidote," Kakashi ordered. "I'll go explain the situation to the council." Naruto nodded and ran after the guards as fast as he could, while carefully carrying his teammate on his back. They rushed through the dusty streets of Suna, followed closely by Lee who carried the elder lady, that was as unable to move as herself.

"Sakura, are you alright? I'm so worried about you," the eyebrowy shinobi called out, manly tears on his face. He had confessed his love to her several times and was a good person with a heart of gold, always worrying about others. Just too special for her to like him back. She winked at him, which seemed to ease his worries. "Aah, as expected of the sweet Sakura, you're so strong!" He really was a special guy.

"Of course she's alright, she's Sakura!" Naruto joked back at him, his widest smile plastered all over his face. "She smashed the dumb puppet jerk to pieces with her ultra strength!"

* * *

Thanks for reading my second chapter! I'm so not confident aabout this and really not happy with some parts but I decided it was really time to post this. So I hope you enjoy some party of it!

I included some of my thoughts about the original Saso - Saku fight. Like he couldn't have lost this thing. But my chapter explained that enough already.

So I'm really interested in what you think: should Sasori have won?

And of course I like reviews! Thanks for my first one ever, I was really happy about that one.


	3. How to save a life

The medics at the hospital had brought her and Chiyo into a separated room to inject the antidotes and tend to their wounds. They had a hard time separating Naruto and Lee from Sakura, but the two finally gave in when the threats became more aggressive. Threatening to refuse their treatment worked immediately. Neither wanted to harm Sakura, so they stood back, waiting in the visitors area, as she and the granny were taken away.

A few hours after their treatment, the two women were able to control their bodies again. They were still weak, but at least they could move freely once more . Testing her fingers and other limbs, Sakura sat up on the bed and stretched out her legs to make sure she could feel everything again. Pleased with the result, she stood up to test her balance and walked a few steps towards the doctors. The Suna hospital had done a great job in replicating the dose she had created, and made enough doses to cure similar injuries caused by this type of poison immediately from now on.

Sakura silently commented in her head how well her other injuries had been treated. They were mainly deep scratches and bruises, since Sasori had tried to avoid her and sent his puppets after her. She shivered, as she wondered how much more damage a direct hit would have dealt. All that was left from this fight were her sore muscles and the mess her hair had become. The injuries were reduced to thin red lines covering her body. It was clear to see that the staff had done a great job tending to her.

Beaming with pride, Sakura praised them for their fast and precise implementation of her recipe. The poison was complex, and the antidote even more so to manufacture, so it wasn't unpretentious that they had accomplished the task and on top of that made it in time. Their faces radiated with happiness about her acknowledgement. They knew she had trained under Tsunade, one of the top medics in the world, so it meant a lot to be praised by her student. Although, soon after their expressions shadowed again.

"Elder Chiyo, Lady Haruno - we're sorry, but we desperately need your help. Now. Lord Kazekage-sama seems to be in a really bad state, which is beyond our knowledge. Please, examine him right now," one of them requested. The badge on his arm showed his status - the Head Medic in whole Suna. His eyes were hopeful, but within his voice was fear. The other medical assistants nodded in agreement. Sakura wondered what state they were talking about, especially since the best doctor in the whole country cared for them instead of their Kazekage, who was the top priority in every way.

Her eyes narrowed as she remembered something Naruto had mumbled on their way here. It had been something about Gaara's death. If he was right, she had no idea what they were talking about. Did they really think this was a state that could be cured?

She looked at the old lady in shock, who nodded to the medics. "Bring me to him, fast!" she commanded with a biting voice. No one in the hospital had told them before about Gaara's exact state. There was no data about him and no word about it after leaving the room. They had probably tried several things by themself first, not wanting to disturb the two because of their injuries. Asking them for help meant, this was beyond Suna's medical knowledge, but the absence of records about his medical state was weird.

The doctors of Sunagakure were second in knowledge only to Konoha, which might be due to Tsunade and the rules she had enforced, which led to more training in the medical field. Not only Konoha, but the whole world had slowly started to focus more on healing techniques. Sakura hoped she could help them somehow with their current problem. Maybe it was another poison that faked a death state. Gaara was her friend, and the precious leader of a hidden village, so she would do everything within her power to save him.

"What can you tell me about the state he's in?" she asked a second time, as she quickly followed them through the transitions of the hospital. "We.. ehm… we're not really allowed to talk about this here," the head medic of them stuttered. He was obviously trying to avoid the question.

The pinkette heard how Chiyo took in a sharp breath at the response. "What's wrong?", she asked her, curious if she had missed something. Maybe Suna had some kind of secret language only the elder understood. Though, when she didn't get an answer, Sakura sighed, and decided not to press the topic further for now. She was sure she would find out as soon as she would see Gaara.

The head medic stopped in front of a door. Guards glared at Sakura. By now they were quite far from the main hospital complex, far enough to be out of sight of the commoners. It was a locked room, which he unlocked to let the two in. "Knock twice if you need something. A guard will wait by the door and bring you whatever you might need," he explained, before he closed the door behind the two women.

Sakura stared at the door. She couldn't understand what was going on, or why everyone was so very secretive when it was them who had asked her for help. She gulped, then moved her body to face her companion. The old lady's eyes were narrowed to mere slits, lips pressed together to a slim line.

"You know, Sakura, they had to be silent to keep this situation a secret from the villagers as long as possible." She took a deep breath and collected herself, before she went on with her explanation. Sakura already felt chills running down her spine. This couldn't be something good, and it seemed like she was the only one that still didn't understand what was going on.

"As you know, our Kazekage was a jinchuuriki for the one tailed beast. A Bijuu and his host are bound for a lifetime. Extraction isn't possible without killing the human vessel." Sakura nodded. She had gathered bits and pieces about this topic wherever she could as to understand Naruto and his body better. They were teammates, so she wanted to be able to heal him the best way possible if he ever needed it.

"I have a bad feeling about this." The old lady's words ripped Sakura from her train of thought. If Chiyo was worried, it had to be serious.

The words hammered in Sakura's head. Jinjuriki, like Naruto. That was nothing new, but bound together for a lifetime? So if Akatsuki really had extracted the Shukaku - did that mean Gaara was dead?

—

The body was put on an operation table. All around it was medical gear and lamps that illuminated the room to be as bright as daylight. The walls were made of green tiles, perfect for a quick cleaning. Shelves were filled with every piece that could be needed. Sakura doubted there was a better suited room in the whole country to treat a person. It seemed to be especially prepared for treating the Kazekage. Like personal chambers he had a personal medical room. If she needed any gear to help him, it would be right here.

Closer inspection of Gaara wasn't necessary to answer most of her questions. Even though his body was less harmed than hers had been, he clearly was no longer alive. No breath, no heartbeat. Nothing. For the first time in her life, she saw wounds on his body and imperfections in his clothing. It was ripped apart and burned on several ends from explosions. The dark red cloth had turned black spotwise. Bruises and scratches plastered his body where it was uncovered. Even his red hair looked messier than ever from all the blood and dust.

Usually his ultimate defense made of sand would protect him at any time, but he had given up on it to protect the village. A place he loved so much. It pained Sakura to see him this way. He had given his life to the people of Suna. His feelings had been so strong. Gaara had become a great leader despite everything they had done to him years ago. No matter what lies they might have told him, he had build himself a place to stay and fought for it until his last breath. And even if it meant his life, he had won. It was one of the greatest sacrifices she had ever encountered.

Sakura froze, and her knees weakened. Yet she managed to regain control before they gave in completely. Shaking, she gripped his hand and squeezed it in hers without thinking. Long ago she had feared, even hated him, but now she felt nothing except overwhelming sadness and respect. Tears began to run down her face as she realized what had happened. They were too late. Now, and already when they opposed the two Akatsuki members in the cave. Her fight had been useless. She was useless.

Her medical skills were spotless, but she was no necromancer.

There was no way to bring him back from the dead.

Suna had officially lost it's fifth Kazekage.

She winced as Chiyo gently touched her shoulder. The older smirked, then turned around and shooed every guard and doctor but Sakura out of the room, closing the doors and locking them from the inside.

Still sobbing Sakura wondered what the elder was up to. It seemed like she wanted to examine Gaara in a more private circumstance. But there was nothing worth looking at. As if any of them were able to change this situation. It didn't make sense to her. His state was clear to see, there was no use in an examination. Sakura knew this truth was hard to swallow, even more for a resident of this city that had spent way more time with Gaara than she had. On the other hand there was no use in holding on to the dead, ignoring reality. Sakura's eyes followed the elder's actions closely. Chiyo must have known this. Yet every move, and every step showed anything but sadness. Still she didn't seem down at all, just busy.

Chiyo drew closer again and loosened Sakura's hands from her dead friend. Until now Sakura had squeezed his hand so hard, her own hand was hurting. Staring deep into her eyes, Chiyo explained "Sakura, I do need your help. He does. But before we do this, you need to know one thing." She chuckled quietly before she went on. Her eyes had a playful shine to them.

"I bet this is nothing Tsunade knows about," she said with a toothy grin before she squeezed Sakura's hand and placed it over her heart. Sakura could feel it beating if nothing was wrong here. The old lady seemed to calm to her, especially in this situation.

"This is a forbidden technique. We can take a part of our life force - " she pressed the hand stronger towards her chest and then slowly moved it to Gaara's chest " - and give it to him, to save his life. Usually, this would kill the executing shinobi. That's why we both have to work together in this. And we will need others, too."

Sakura's mouth opened and closed, but no sound left it. She struggled with the new information. Never in her life had she used a forbidden jutsu before. Tsunade had taught her how to use the Chakra reserves she stored in the crystal shape on her forehead, but also reminded her of the dangers of forbidden techniques. Mostly they ended with death or souls bound to the god of death, which had the same effect.

All her concentration was focused on what she just heard. A way to transfer live. The possibility to bring people back from the dead. It sounded too good to be true. The negative aspects must be enormous. Death seemed like a fair price. The whole concept made so much sense, yet she had never heard or read about it. Had no one ever tried it? Were there more negative aspects Chiyo hadn't told her about? Questions kept on filling her mind and she demanded answers.

"So we both give him only a part of our lifeforce and don't die in the process, right? What do I have to do?" she asked. A slight motivation crept up inside her mixed with fear. Maybe there was a chance to save him. If there was, she wouldn't hesitate a second to take it. There was no shinobi in Suna as capable and committed as Gaara in Suna. Losing him would greatly harm the allied country. She had to help. As long as no one got hurt, nobody would have to know about this.

"Wait here. We need more people. Otherwise, it would eat away too much of your life," she turned away from Sakura towards the door but stopped and grinned at her once more. "You'd be dead at the age of thirty otherwise." Sakura gulped. So this technique really managed to work with life force directly. Now there were no more questions as to why it was labeled a forbidden technique.

She waited as Chiyo knocked on the door and explained she needed as many volunteers here as possible within twenty minutes. In addition, she told them to line up, grab each other by their hands and sit down comfortably. The last bit left Sakura wondering again. She demanded everyone's eyes to be shut. The guards ran to fulfill their new duties and Chiyo nodded. She seemed pleased as she slowly came back to Sakura.

"Let's put him on the ground first. This will take a while and I can't stand the whole time," the grey-haired ordered, lifting his body from the operation table with Sakura's help. By the time the guards came back with an uncountable number of people, the two were done with their task and clothed in medical equipment. Chiyo gave some last orders before she came back in. One of the doors was open now and two lines of people sat on the ground, barely any space between them. Sakura couldn't see how many people participated, but it seemed to be endless. Only guards were close enough to be inside the room. Everyone had closed their eyes, waiting for orders from the elder.

"Now get yourself into a relaxed position, take the hand of the persons next to you into yours. Sakura, you take his and one of the guards," she made a sign towards Gaara for explanation. Sakura quickly grabbed his hand and held it tightly.

"We'll build a circle like that. All you have to do is relax and lend me your strength. I can do the rest." The elder stopped her explanation when she realised Sakura had an endless amount of questions plastered all over her face. Before the pink haired got to ask any, Chiyo shook her head.

"It's better if you don't know exactly what I'm doing. I don't want you to get in trouble for the crimes of an old hag like me, you know." An encouraging smirk appeared on her face. The last words had been so quiet only Sakura could understand. This time the lady didn't even laugh. She was serious for once.

The thought of giving a part of her lifeforce away made Sakura anxious. She didn't get the chance to ask what exactly it meant, and she was too afraid to do so during the process. Messing up the procedure by disturbing Chiyo's concentrated state was not within her intentions. It took a while before something else happened.

The people sat quietly on the ground with their eyes closed and holding their neighbours hands. No one dared to speak or open their eyes. Without being told what was going on they had came, because the guards told them it was for Gaara's sake. Sakura envied him for the trust these people gave him. She prayed to all gods she knew, for this procedure would work. She begged for him to breathe again.

The guard next to her twitched a little. She could feel it as he squeezed her hand as if something had surprised him. Sakura had to fight of the daring wish to open her eyes and see what was happening. Yet she sat as still as possible, waiting anxiously for whatever was going to happen to her, wondering if she would feel anything when it happened.

Suddenly the air around her began to buzz like in a thunderstorm. As if electricity was in the air. She could feel how an unknown force slowly streamed into her body from the connected hand. It moved upwards her arm, leaving a tickling feeling wherever it passed. Up her arm and shoulder towards her chest, then gently touching her heart. It became a weird, unpleasant feeling from this point. Her heart began to race, fighting against the unknown power inside her.

Sakura tensed at the feeling. Chiyo had not said anything about this pain. She wondered whether this was part of the process or not but decided to not ask for now. As soon as she relaxed a little, the pain was gone and the force fused with her heart. It felt surprisingly good, as if she had more power than ever. Sakura felt like a kid again with endless energy and strength.

It lasted only a few seconds before it felt as if her heart was ripped apart. She could still feel the energy inside her, now with a piece of herself. The parts became one and slowly flew through her body towards the hand that touched the dead. With another tickle it moved along her arm, lingered a while on her palm that touched Gaara before it slid outside of her. She couldn't control her curiosity any longer. She opened her eyes a little and peeked.

A dark red lightning surrounded her hand and Gaara's, then it disappeared into his skin. She realised this must have been the energy Chiyo had been talking about. Life force. Somehow she could feel the lifeforce making its way to his heart. It moved even slower than it had through her body. She wondered if the dead cells reduced the speed. Not knowing anything about the technique irritated her but also gained her curiosity. It seemed so simple. Was it really so easy to bring somebody back to life?

Sakura watched quietly but couldn't see any differences on the outside. The only indication was the reddish thing she could feel inside Gaara, when she closed her eyes. Following the feeling further was tempting, but she didn't dare to do so. Chiyo had told her not to do anything, so she would keep her word. There might be dangers she didn't even knew of. Maybe the elder would explain the technique to her, if she asked her in privacy. Sakura felt the strong urge to learn more about it, for the endless possibilities in medical use.

Some of her hair strands had loosened from her high ponytail and fell into her face, but she had to endure their tickling for now. She could see the dust and blood that stained them, some leftovers of her fight. She thought about how much she needed a shower after this, or a hot bath and something to eat before she'd get herself some rest. The sun might be up by now, which meant she was awake for more than twenty-four hours. She remembered the exhausted faces of her friends. They must be just as tired as herself. She hoped they took their time to recover themselves, instead of waiting for her in the visitors' area.

Thoughts began to flood her mind. Pictures of the fight tortured her again, reawakening the fear. Sasori was still alive, and somewhere out there, lurking in the shadows. Who knew what he was up to right now. He'd probably seek revenge for his dead partner. The message had been clear. He threatened her not to tell anyone about him surviving their fight. He had even prepared the battlefield to make it look like he had died there. Nobody would be prepared if he were to strike back on them. But warning them and risking the consequences was not an option either. For now, she couldn't find an answer to what she should do about this.

Soon after, Chiyo opened her eyes and let go of Gaara's hand. Following her steps, Sakura loosened her hand and helped her to put him back on the operating table. By now the guards had made sure the room was empty again and the people that had helped before were gone.

The Kazekage's complexion seemed a little more healthy by now and his breathing had returned, yet not as strong as she wanted it to be. The heartbeat was just as weak, but existent. She couldn't believe it. It seemed like he really lived again. They had brought him back from the dead.

Tears began to fill her eyes as she realised what had just happened. Overjoyed she threw her arms around Chiyo in a hug, sobbing in happiness and disbelief. The old one giggled, patting her back in return. "Thanks for your help. I couldn't have done it by myself. But this has to stay our secret." She winked at Sakura, who swore to herself to never tell anybody what had happened in this room.

"Of course!", Sakura exclaimed in consent, which got her a shushing sound and rolling eyes. After drying her tears, they examined Gaara once more. He was able to speak again and both were pleased with the results. He was still weak, but the Suna medics should be able to do the rest.

There was nothing more to do for Sakura. Gaara just made her promise him to come back later for a report and checkup. After all the hours of fighting and fear she left him to Chiyo and the other medics. She really needed a shower and a bed now.

* * *

Welcome to chapter three!  
I hope you enjoyed the story so far. By now there is still no sign of Sasori but he will return. I promise.  
Another part I really didn't understand in canon Naruto - I don't think Chiyo had to die. And I need her for later parts of the story so for now I saved her life.

What do you think about it? Was Chiyo's death really necessary in canon?

Oh and I love reviews, thanks for the last ones!

-Amsally


	4. Failure

The sun was shining bright and clear on another perfect day in Konoha. No clouds shadowed the magnificent weather. Outside the house kids were playing ninja on the streets, trying to catch cats, throwing shuriken at trees and laughing when they were successful. Street shops opened, filling the streets with their delicious smell and praising their goods whenever a villager came in sight.

Overall, it was a peaceful day like all the others before.

Today he would go out of his way, ask her for a date and she just had to say yes! There was no way she would decline him if he really asked for once. He was sure about it. Sakura Haruno would definitely go out with him and finally fall in love with the man of her dreams. The problem was, the prettiest girl in town didn't know anything about it yet.

He grinned at the mirror, making sure his training suit still fit him fine and his headband sat nicely on his forehead. The new black coloured edition was really cool and looked awesome with his clothes. No other shinobi in Konoha looked as cool as him. He knew, because he had checked them all out, just to make sure there was no other enemy in the fight for his beloved one. Since his former best friend had left the village, he was the coolest guy around. She must have realised that, she just had to.

His alarm ringed and made him stare in shock at the clock. It was already that late? They had a meeting in ten minutes at the other end of the hidden village and he didn't have his breakfast yet!

He ran to his kitchen, grabbed the first halfway edible thing in sight and sprinted straight out of the window. Taking the shortest path possible to the estimated location, he jumped over roofs and gates. People were screaming at him, but he ignored them. No matter how angry they were, no one compared to her in getting angry. He had to do everything he could still do, to be at least almost on time. Otherwise she would probably punch him again and his face still hurt from last time.

She really had become strong. He admired her since childhood, but the 'new' Sakura was even more stunning. The girl had always been pretty, which he had told her since the day they had met the first time, but she never saw him the way he looked at her. She was caring, and sweet and did everything to protect people she held dear. In his opinion, she was the most perfect human being on the planet.

The only person more appealing than the young Sakura-chan was Sakura-chan the way she was now. The training she took under granny Tsunade really had made her incredible strong. Almost inhuman. He laughed at the thought, but quickly became quiet again as a picture of her, reacting to his thought popped up in his mind. It might be better to never ever tell her about it. He didn't want to risk getting punched again. Why did she do it all the time, anyway?

Today he'd definitely ask her out on a date. It was the perfect day. At least he had thought so until he saw her face when he arrived at the meeting point.

Usually she wore a bright smile on her face and he would grin at her in the same way, happy to see her. Sometimes she would hug him and say something nice. On other days, his late being ones, she'd stare at him furiously and hurt him, enraged as she was.

Today she was different. It could be seen all over her face and posture. Something was off. It was time for him to cheer her up!

"Good morning Sakura chan!" he called, jumping to the ground in front of her. She shrugged at his sudden appearance, clearly surprised. His face was plastered with a smile, really happy to see her today. "Great weather, right? It's perfect today!" he stated the obvious. Maybe that would make her smile.

His attempt failed. She merely grinned weakly and looked away, taking a step back from him. Naruto looked at her confused, wondering what might have happened.

"Sakura-chan, are you alright?" he asked, even more worried than before. It wasn't her usual reaction to anything.

"I'm not," she whispered, not looking at him. He could see a tear running down her face, then followed by another one. Shortly after, she was sobbing in broad daylight. That was something bad, he decided. Carefully he wrapped his arms around her, trying to make her feel better. On the contrary, she cried even harder.

It was a perfect option for him to be her hero, he decided. He'd make her happy again and then she had to go out with him. There was no way she would decline then! He thanked kami internally for the option that was given to him. On the other hand, his worries grew, as he gently patted her hair. She held on to him, clenching her fists at the back of his training jacket. How long had he waited for her to hug him like that? Since they were four? He didn't remember.

"Sakura-chan... what happened?" At the sound of his concerned words, her head lifted slowly. Her gaze reached his, looking at him with swollen, red eyes. Still beautiful, of course. She never looked bad, or average, no matter what happened. Though she had better days than this. She looked at him in pain. "I got fired," she whispered before her tears welled up, which made her hide her face on his chest again. By now he could feel the dampness on his skin. His jacket had become soggy because of her sobbing.

The words rang in his ears, repeating themselves again and again. Yet he couldn't believe what she had just told him. Her only job besides being a kunoichi, was at the hospital where she worked part time whenever she was in Konoha between missions. She had cured more people than he could count in there and everyone loved her, patients and doctors alike. Sakura had made that antidote for Kankuro, which even the best medics in Suna couldn't have done. People were already talking about her as if she were the new Tsunade, a prodigy that had started a worldwide revolution when it came to medicine. Of course, she was better than the granny, at least in his opinion. No one was as smart as her and she was younger and prettier than the fifth Hokage.

How could anyone with a brain in their head take the job from her she held so dear?

The thoughts made him wonder even more about the strange situation. The head medic had fired her? No way, Shizune liked her too much. The way they talked with each other was weird to him, strange woman stuff. Yet Shizune didn't seem like someone that didn't respect Sakura's skills. They were both students of the Godaime and respected each other. Sometimes they acted more like sisters than professionals.

The Godaime... Tsunade? The granny must have gone crazy, if she had done that to his cute Sakura-chan. Too much sake, he suspected. Enough sake for the whole village to get drunk.

He decided it was about time to rub her back as an attempt to comfort her. Usually she wouldn't stay so close to him, especially not for such a long period of time. He greatly appreciated her presence this close to him. The faint smell of cherries surrounded her. A really sweet smell, he decided. Just perfect for her.

"Sakura, listen. There's no way they really kicked you out!"

The boy used his most convincing smile, but she didn't look up or react in any way. Instead she began to shiver. He quickly realised this might not have been the best to tell her. There had to be something better, that would convince her and make her smile again. He would save her day, if only he found the right words for it.

"Everyone loves you, especially at the hospital. There must have been a mistake, you know." He grinned at her as he lifted her head again, with his finger placed under her chin. The look on her face clearly told him that she didn't believe in what he had just told her either.

The reaction wasn't what he had hoped to get, which made him try even harder. She had to be happy, otherwise he wouldn't get a chance to ask her out. Sad girls didn't say yes, never. Naruto pulled his arm up around her shoulder and maneuvered her to the bench next to them. There he gently pushed her on the seat and sat down beside her, arm still around her shoulder.

"Granny was drunk, right?" he joked. Still she didn't seem to react in the way he had hoped her to. Even after countless tries he couldn't get her to smile. Like a lifeless doll she wouldn't answer him. Naruto eventually gave up and busied himself with rubbing her back in a comforting way. Silently they sat on the bench, waiting for their sensei to appear. Hours later he still hadn't appeared.

When Sakura stood up without a warning, Naruto shrugged. He had been about to fall asleep when she waved him goodbye and left without a word. By the time he realised what had happened, she was already gone. The sun began to set and with this, the perfect day to ask Sakura out ended for the blonde.

Shadows slowly crawled over the streets and hugged the world like a blanket.

Naruto made his way back to his apartment. What a weird day. Not only was Sakura, one of the happiest persons he knew, shattered and sad. Their Sensei had completely ditched them. A thing Kakashi had never done before.

By now he and Sakura were aware about the fact Kakashi-sensei was late to every occasion. He would be late on his own wedding. The thought made the blonde chuckle. How had this man ever passed an exam in his life? He began to whistle and cross his arms behind his head as he turned towards the direction of his apartment. On the way there he could visit Ichiraku's, as usual. A nice cup of ramen would lighten his mood now!

As he sat down on one of the seats, a wide smile already welcomed him. The owner of Ichiraku's and the boy had become friends. Whenever Naruto wasn't on missions, he visited the shop daily to eat a good portion of ramen. He never ate less than several bowls. The only thing that could keep the boy away, was an empty bank account.

Naruto grinned back in return, already rubbing his belly. He couldn't wait for the delicious noodles. A perfect way to end the day! His mood was so overwhelmingly good, he didn't recognize his sensei in one of the other seats. The grey-haired man looked bored in his direction before he ordered another bowl of food and moved closer.

"Naruto."

The blonde whirled his head around grinning at the older one. He hadn't expected to find him here after he had waited the whole day for him, but he could definitely forgive his sensei if he was willing to pay for Naruto's ramen. He would try to convince him as a compensation for ditching him earlier.

"Kakashi sensei! You here? Great! I need to show you this new technique!", Naruto called out. Immediately he jumped from his seat, ready to show his newest creation. The older man sighed and grabbed Naruto's collar to make the boy sit down next to him, before he could start a disaster. It was just like years ago when team 7 was still new and came to the ramen shop on a more regular basis. They had spent many evenings there to celebrate their completed missions.

Naruto complained at the top of his lungs but gave in as soon as his usual bowl of ramen appeared in front of him. He quickly mumbled the usual words and broke his chopsticks into two pieces. Immediately he began digging into the delicious noodle soup. It was his favourite flavour, which made him gulp down the dish even faster. Kakashi couldn't take his eyes off the sight next to him. It really was just like three years ago. A single bowl of ramen and the jinchuuriki forgot about everything.

"Naruto."

Again, he addressed the blonde who just grunted as an answer while he devoured the next bowl.

"About today's missio-"

He couldn't end his sentence. Naruto interrupted him halfway, exclaiming how Kakashi had not only been late, but had not come at all to the meeting point. His rant also included how Sakura's mood had been, owning him an arched eyebrow.

"Depressed? I expected that." Again, the grey haired sighed.

"Anyways - the mission got cancelled. You have free time until we are assigned a new one. I expect you to train hard."

Naruto stared at him in shock, his mouth slightly opened. It made him look like anything but a proper trained shinobi. The boy leaned closer to his sensei and demanded to hear the information again. Missions did not get cancelled without valid reasons. Even kids knew that much. No wonder he was curious.

"So, cancelled, hm? What made granny Tsunade make such a decision?" The hushed whisper was barely hearable in the noisy surrounding of the ramen shop. For once Naruto let go of his noisy behaviour, much to Kakashi's relief. He took a few sips of his own soup before he decided to tell the boy about the reason. With hushed words he explained the circumstances as quickly as possible.

"Sakura got suspended from her shinobi status. She's a commoner now. One-man teams are not allowed."

He glanced sideways to inspect Naruto's expression. The young shinobi was finally quiet, staring dumbfounded at him. It didn't seem like he had completely understood his situation. As long as Sakura wasn't around, his life would change drastically. In a second attempt to explain the effect it would have on him, Kakashi began to talk once more.

"So, team 7 officially doesn't exist anymore. This means no more missions for you, until you get new team members assigned."

Kakashi had tried to keep his voice down to prevent others from eavesdropping. Sakura was famous in Konoha as the youngest medic-nin and in addition, Tsunade's apprentice. Everyone knew the pink haired kunoichi. One more reason to not destroy her reputation any further than Tsunade already had. She was basically deemed worthless after getting expelled from her hospital duties by the Hokage herself.

The unmistakable screech Naruto voiced, turned all heads into their direction. He had jumped up from his seat, throwing his food bowl away in the process. Soup was everywhere, leaving a huge mess. It was all over his orange training jacket and dripped from the counter of the shop, but he didn't even seem to notice it.

His face had turned an angry shade of red, which pointed out his whiskers even more. Right now, he seemed more feral than human. The nine tailed within Naruto clearly fed of the young ninja's anger again, leaving him blind to common sense.

"Sakura got WHAT?"

* * *

Hello again! I received to many nice comments and new followers, favourites and I guess I should explain some things. First - thank you all for the love and appreciation. Don't worry, I don't plan on dropping this story. I have outlined it completely and some of the chapters deeper in the story are already written, it's just that life itself got in the way.  
I had a big move and tons of hospital visits and rehabilitation clinic stuff because of my back pains (spinal damage is just really painful.)  
My back pains don't allow me to sit for long, which means I write less - so in conclusion chapters I wrote in one night take a few weeks to write and about a month to edit :'(  
I'm sorry. I really am.

About the SasoSaku part of the story - it is coming. I just want a really solid basis to explain why the pretty canon Sakura would ever get in contact with him, without going to ooc. I just really hate it when stories don't make sense.

I hope you liked to see a bit of Naruto's POV, he will have his part in this story as well :) Thank you all for reading my works. I'm so happy.

What do you think made Tsunade throw Sakura out of the hospital? ;)


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